Asian Cuisine in CDMX / Mog Bistró, offering a wide variety of Japanese, Chinese, Malaysian, and Thai dishes
The menu is an almost endless illustrated book, offering a vast array of Asian cuisine options.
By Alejandro Pohlenz
When we arrived, Mog Bistró was packed. We were told that this is “normal.” The restaurant is located on the ground floor of a rather ugly building (it used to be a Catholic convent school) from the 1950s, one of those constructions they call “functional” (to avoid calling it horrible).
The Lotus Pose
Don’t judge the building, the popularity of Mog Bistró, or the fact that it has large communal tables. It’s a bistró (in Spanish, with an accent on the “o”), a “small and cozy restaurant,” meaning the atmosphere is relaxed. We had a Japanese-style table where you’re supposed to sit on the floor (on a tatami), in lotus pose!
Given my contortionist-level flexibility and my modest legs (I’m being ironic), it was impossible for me to do the lotus without risking a fracture. I had to stretch my legs to the side where the relatives were sitting to avoid certain gangrene.
What to Eat? Everything
The menu at Mog Bistró is like an illustrated book. Saying it has a lot of variety is an understatement. It’s a huge catalog of Japanese, Chinese, Malaysian, and Thai cuisine, enough to make anyone indecisive. I personally enjoyed a Japanese dish called Sukiyaki, a type of nabemono (Japanese hot pot). In a boiling pot, there are small pieces of meat, vegetables, and tofu swimming in a mixture of soy sauce, sugar, and mirin. I liked it so much that I forgot my legs were starving for blood!
The menu could take forever to describe. I noticed they’ve added new dishes with wagyu beef (a special type of Japanese cow). Chef Kiyoharu Hasegawa (formerly of the restaurant Nada) offers everything and more: ramen, kushiage, sumibi, kushikatsu (skewers), sashimi, nigiri, teriyaki salmon, tofu teppanyaki, tempura, noodles, rice (with whatever you like), rolls… I think you could go a year without repeating a dish.
- What we love and you should try: Sukiyaki
- What we like less: When the place is crowded, service can be slow.
- Address: Frontera 168, Roma Norte, CDMX
- Hours: Monday–Sunday, 1:00 p.m.–12:00 a.m.
- Ideal for: Lunch and dinner
- Payment: Cash and cards
- Accessibility: Yes
- Parking: Valet
- Reservations: Not required
- Phone: +52 55 5264 1629
- Pet Friendly: Yes (outside, on the sidewalk)
- Public transport nearby: Metro Hospital General
- Vegan options: Yes
- Kid-friendly: Yes
